The decoration or printing of articles in multiple colors is widely practiced today. There are several methods commercially used for multiple color printing on glass, ceramic, and plastic articles. In applied ceramic labeling, the design is applied to a glass or ceramic article, followed by firing of the article at high temperatures to secure adherence of the design to the glass. Each color must be separately applied and fired prior to applying the next color, otherwise the colors will run together, particularly if they are applied in partial or complete registration. This is an expensive, time consuming process which also has certain safety considerations such as the use of high temperature ovens, and colored ink compositions which often contain heavy metals.
It is known to print articles such as glass, plastic, or ceramic with colored inks which are radiation curable, thereby eliminating the necessity of firing the article to secure adherence of the ink. However, with these methods it is necessary to cure each separate color completely prior to application of the next color. This is extremely time consuming and greatly increases the cost of the final decorated container.
Accordingly, there is a need for a decorating or printing method which permits multiple applications of colored radiation curable ink onto an article without the necessity of completely curing each separately applied composition prior to application of the next composition, or a "wet on wet" printing method.